Ooredoo’s Brand Ambassador welcomes talented young players from around the world to Barcelona

A group of 12 talented young people had the chance to meet sporting hero and Ooredoo brand ambassador Leo Messi in Barcelona last week, as Ooredoo’s successful “Simply Do Wonders” competition concluded.

The young sports fans won the competition after uploading videos of themselves displaying their football skills to the dedicated website Simplydowonders.com. They were flown from countries across Ooredoo’s footprint on an all-expenses-paid trip to meet and show their football skills to Leo Messi at training facilities in Barcelona, Spain.

While visiting Barcelona, the children also saw Leo Messi playing football during an official match.

The winners came from Tunisia, The Maldives, Qatar, Indonesia, Algeria, Kuwait, and Palestine. The company also extended two additional places for children from Gaza.

Leo Messi said: “This talented group of young people are an inspiration. Despite the challenges many of them face, they are passionate about football and the life opportunities that sport can provide. The reason I began the Leo Messi Foundation and teamed with Ooredoo is to let children know if they work hard, they really can do wonders. Ooredoo’s support for this contest and their on-going work to promote sport and healthy lifestyles is a great example of how leading companies can make a difference.”

Dr. Nasser Marafih, Group CEO, Ooredoo, said: “This competition has brought football fans around the world together and showcased the skills and aspirations of young people. Working with Leo Messi has enabled us to reach a whole new audience, and we hope together we can keep them engaged and supported through our initiatives for young people.”

Simply Do Wonders was Ooredoo’s first-ever global communication campaign with Leo Messi and involved a television commercial as well as advertising across media. During its run, over 11 million people viewed the advert online, making it the most-seen video ever from an Arab brand on YouTube.

Ooredoo Group received over 500,000 views on the dedicated competition website, 110,000 engagements with the brand on twitter and 130,000 new fans on Facebook during the period awarding the Ooredoo Group Facebook page the number one telecommunications profile in terms of engagement in July according to SocialBakers. The TV commercial was also named the tenth top viral video in the world during the 2014 FIFA World Cup.

Ooredoo is dedicated to creating new opportunities for young people and supporting sports across its footprint. The company sponsors a host of high profile teams including French football club Paris Saint-Germain.

The company is continuing to work with the Leo Messi Foundation on its ongoing mobile health clinic programme, which provides healthcare services for remote areas in Indonesia, Myanmar, Algeria, and Tunisia.

In Indonesia, 16 mobile health clinics have provided free healthcare services for more than 600,000 people. The mobile health clinics have been particularly effective following natural disasters and emergencies, and have now expanded their activities to include providing medicine, vaccinations, and education on infectious diseases for children and their families.